Paul Pelosi, the husband of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, has been released from the hospital where he was recovering from surgery for injuries he suffered when he was attacked with a hammer in the couple’s San Francisco home.
Pelosi, who underwent surgery to repair a skull fracture and injuries to his hand and arm, is now home recovering just six days after the attack, the House speaker said in a statement on Thursday.
“Paul remains under doctors’ care as he continues to progress on a long recovery process and convalescence,” Nancy Pelosi said. “He is now home surrounded by his family who request privacy.”
The Pelosi family is thankful for the beautiful outpouring of love, support and prayers from around the world.
Paul remains under doctors’ care as he continues to progress on a long recovery process and convalescence. He is now home surrounded by his family who request privacy.
— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) November 3, 2022
David DePape, the man who is accused of attacking Pelosi, pleaded not guilty to multiple charges on Tuesday, including attempted murder, residential burglary, assault with a deadly weapon, elder abuse, false imprisonment of an elder, and threats to a public official’s family. The judge approved prosecutors’ motion to have DePape detained without bail.
DePape allegedly broke into the couple’s home early Friday morning, hoping to take Nancy Pelosi hostage. He arrived with zip ties and said he planned to break the speaker’s kneecaps with a hammer if she refused to tell the “truth” about Democrats’ “lies.” Instead, he found 82-year-old Paul Pelosi home alone and struck him in the head with a hammer.
DePape, who has been described by an ex-girlfriend as a mentally ill drug addict, told authorities he was on a “suicide mission” to target other elected officials when he broke into the Pelosi home, according to prosecutors.
While cameras monitored by the U.S. Capitol Police are installed around Pelosi’s home, no one was watching the live feed when DePape allegedly broke in, the Washington Post reported. Officers were monitoring feeds from some 1,800 cameras that overlook the Capitol complex and beyond. It was not until local police arrived at the Pelosi home that a Capitol Police officer began watching the feed from San Francisco.
On Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security said DePape was in the country illegally, having entered the U.S. as a temporary visitor from Canada in March 2008. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement lodged an immigration detainer on DePape on Tuesday. He faces potential deportation.